In the Way
by bellonaa
Summary: In the world of soulmates, Piper McLean never expected to find hers. A story about the relationships we are born with, the ones you are forced into, and the ones you choose for yourselves/ / Jasiper on-going short story.


Piper's words were scrawled on top of her collarbone, written in annoyingly perfect handwriting. Since they had appeared the day she turned thirteen, she had tried to find a flaw in the script, and was pleased when she did: the a's were all different sizes, compared to the uniform perfect letters.

Unlike a lot of people, the soulmark had little meaning to her. She didn't obsess over the first words they were to say to her- she just moved on. She didn't bother to cover it up, though it was in a glaringly obvious to anyone who saw it. She didn't search for her soulmate wholeheartedly- she acknowledged it, but moved on. Her life was spiralling in far too many directions, and she wanted to keep things simple, for once.

She remembered when her friend Annabeth met her soulmate, Percy. It was their senior year of college and they were running late each to their own respective classes, which happened to be in the same building. As Annabeth flung the door open to get into the building, she whacked Percy in the head, who staggered to the side and said "Mean swing. Jesus Christ!" while holding his head.

Annabeth froze, then gaped at Percy for a few seconds. Piper called out from behind her.

"This is Annabeth, she usually doesn't slam doors into people."

Annabeth shot her a very Annabeth glare, then knelt down to help Percy, who replied to Piper. "I hope she won't make a habit of it, then."

Annabeth choked out a few words, after a couple of awkward seconds. "Your nose is bleeding."

Percy's face shot up towards her, suddenly arced in concentration. "Let me see it."

Annabeth stared at him. "You mean-"

"Your soulmark. Let me see it."

Annabeth slipped off her backpack and her sweater, leaving her in a plain black tank top. She turned around and pulled her hair to the side, revealing the words written in messy writing.

 _Mean swing. Jesus Christ!_

Percy stared at her like she was some sort of ethereal being, then extended his right arm and rolled up his sleeve to reveal in Annabeth's perfect cursive.

 _Your nose is bleeding._

The soulmates looked at each other for a moment. The moment was ruined when Percy winced in pain and Annabeth apologized profusely, and took him off to the campus nurse. Piper watched them go, feeling like she was intruding on some private moment and made her way off to class.

And here they were, three years later, still the most perfect couple ever. Annabeth was Piper's best friend, but Percy slowly became it too, after the first month or so of Piper thinking Percy was stealing Annabeth away. They were awesome, but Piper didn't always want to be around a couple.

No matter how amazing Percy and Annabeth's relationship was, Piper had seen soulmates fall apart, too. Her mother, who she had met twice, was the rare kind of person who had multiple soulmates. Lines of dialogue scrawled across her body, different first words.

Piper's dad had been one of them. But the problem was, these people never stuck with one of their soulmates. Maybe they did, but Piper's mother sure wasn't one of them. They had a brief relationship in their twenties, and nine months later Piper was born. She always saw her father as a shell of himself because of what her mother had done.

He was fine, after a while. But Piper thought her father was never quite the same as before. He would smile when he saw her, act like a great dad, but whenever he thought nobody was watching his eyes would darken. Lines settled into his face and he didn't smile.

Piper didn't necessarily want her soulmate, but she didn't not want them, either. She had seen what they did to people. And she was sure she'd function fine by herself, anyways. She was used to it.

After college, she moved to New York with Annabeth and Percy. Her father had been more than willing to pay for her apartment, as the couple had chosen to live together. Piper wasn't surprised by this, but she couldn't pretend she wasn't a little sad, too.

All around her, people talked about the magic of meeting your other half for the first time. Most people found them in their early twenties, so by twenty-four, Piper was okay with not having found them yet. Maybe they met, and maybe they didn't. It wasn't up to her to decide. Lots of people never even found them at all.

She did go on a few dates, and eventually she had a boyfriend for a while. His name was Alex, and his words were on his forearm.

 _I'm going to go out on a whim here- you're seeing the new Disney movie?_

They were twenty three at the time, and going to the movies. When the clerk at the ticket counter had said those words, Alex's jaw had gone slack and he had turned to Piper. She just nodded at him, smiled, said _Good luck_ and walked away.

Piper turned around at the last moment to see him still standing there, talking animatedly with her. She cried for a little bit, but after a while she realized that there was no reason to. He was where he needed to be now.

Piper had come to terms with it. She either met them or she didn't. And either one was okay.

She didn't need a soulmate, either. She still had her friend Leo, who hadn't found his soulmate. They hung out together at Leo's engineering firm or his garage where he repaired old cars whenever Piper was burnt out of Percy and Annabeth or just wanted a place to go.

She still saw her dad sometimes. It was hard not too, considering who he was. She saw Tristan McLean's face plastered around the city on movie posters, or whenever he came into town. Their meetings were awkward and rigid, but it was something.

Piper didn't even think about her words anymore. It wasn't until she was hanging out at Leo's complaining about her boss, when he interrupted her.

"What are your words again?"

Piper frowned. She hadn't thought about them in … how long? She glanced down at her collarbone, and they were as omnipresent as ever.

 _California. San Francisco, to be specific._

They were general, but Piper was okay with it.

She repeated the words back to Leo. "Why do you ask?"

"Just wondering," he drummed a wrench against his thigh. "I met my soulmate, yesterday."

Piper gasped. "And you didn't tell me right away?"

He laughed. "Her name is Calypso. She came in to pick up something for her father, and it happened."

Piper smiled at her friend. "That's great, Leo. Are you going to meet up sometime?"

"Yeah. Tonight, actually. We're going to go to dinner in an hour or two."

"Well, I'm gonna dash, because you have a date to get ready for, Valdez. Call me tomorrow and tell me how it goes."

Leo thanked her and showed her out, but Piper couldn't deny the little twinge she got. First Percy and Annabeth. Now Leo.

She kept telling herself that she didn't need a soulmate, but Piper kept glancing around at all of the happy couples, and she had never felt more alone.

The weeks passed slowly, drifting by. At first everything hurt a little bit, but she realized her self pity was stupid, because all of her friends were so happy. She met Calypso, and liked her a lot. Leo was so much happier around her.

Weeks turned into months. Piper started running again in the mornings, usually trailing her way through Central Park. It was cathartic, and she tried to do it as often as possible.

Suddenly, it was her birthday. She was twenty five, and for the first time in a long time, Piper felt like she didn't need a soulmate. For as long as she had denied it, there was one part of her that always wanted someone. It's almost like she was a kid again, before the words became a part of her, and she forgot how good it felt not to have that following her around.

Annabeth surprised her in the morning with coffee and pancakes. She didn't bring Percy over, and Piper couldn't deny it made her a little happy, because Percy was always around and it's nice to just have the two of them. They talked about the birthday dinner planned for tonight, at Piper's favorite restaurant with all their friends.

When Annabeth left to go to work, Piper put on her favorite outfit and locked her apartment, meandering down to the subway. This morning, her words are easy to see to everyone who looks, and Piper remembered that for a while, she had subconsciously covered them up.

She headed down the subway stairs and was about to slide her card when Piper saw a tall blonde man staring at the subway map in confusion. She'd never seen him before- but then again, it's New York City, and millions of people lived there. Piper didn't know what she was doing and she watched him for a while, a number of minutes, and he hasn't moved. Eventually she took pity on him, it's clear he isn't a local.

She walked up to him and stared at the map he's trying to decipher. "You aren't from around here, are you?"

"California. San Francisco, to be specific."

His words don't resonate in her mind as she turned to him. "Where do you need to go? I can help you out."

The first time she looked at his face is when it resonated with her. His blue eyes are wide and stared directly at her, and his jaw dropped open. His gaze lowered to her collarbone, and Piper stared as they traced easily over the writing.

He stuck his hand out. "I'm Jason. Jason Grace."

"Piper McLean."

He shifted uncomfortably. "My words are on the side of my torso, otherwise I'd show them to you."

She smiled. "Mine are out in the open."

He didn't reply, just looked at her like he's drinking her in. The more Piper looks at him the more handsome he is, with regal Roman features and those electric blue eyes.

She kept saying his name over and over in her head. Jason. Jason.

He was the first to break the awkward silence. "It's great to meet you. It really is."

Piper frowned. "Okay?"

"I live in San Francisco," he continued. His first words to her flash in her mind and Piper remembered why she came up to him in the first place. "I'm here for five days, for a business meeting."

Piper wished he hadn't said anything at all. She paused before answering. "Okay. I live here. I think you could tell that."

Jason almost smiled. "How about I get your number? We can meet up sometime in the next few days. While I'm still here."

Piper almost didn't reply. After a moment, the words tumbled out of her lips, but they don't feel like they're hers. "Um. Okay."

Jason looked at her intently like he doesn't know what to say. Like she's a puzzle he's trying to figure out. They exchange numbers quickly and stand there for a second, suspended.

"There's another thing you should know," he kept talking. "Because I don't know what's going to happen with this, so I want to go in open."

Piper stared at him. She wanted to ask him not to say anything else, because he's already ruined this enough.

"I have a girlfriend."

Piper nodded. She'd perfected her poker face over the years. She knows that her emotions shouldn't be crawling through- jealousy and betrayal, from someone she's known for thirty seconds. "Okay. Let's meet up again and talk about the … logistics."

She felt like a secretary, like she's arranging a business meeting. Piper wanted to crawl inside herself, but Jason flashed her this beautiful smile and she can't help but try to grimace back. He must notice something wrong in her expression because his eyebrows furrow, but he didn't press questions.

"Tonight?" he asked. "Dinner?"

"No," Piper said quickly. "I have plans. Tomorrow, maybe. For breakfast?" Tomorrow's a Saturday. She can leave work miserable and cry on the subway, force herself to go to her birthday dinner, and get to bed early.

He nodded. "That sounds fine."

They stood awkwardly for a second. Jason was the first to break the silence. "I'm sorry, but I really need to get going. Can I have those directions?"

Piper's eyes watered. _Jerk._

"Yeah. Where are you going?"

He told her and she spit out directions and a hurried goodbye, not bothering to hear his reply, then rushed to catch her train so he won't see her cry. Taking hold of a metal pole, Piper turned away from the other passengers. When she wiped her eyes long streaks of black mascara run down her fingers and she swore under her breath.

The rest of the day passes in a haze. Her co-workers give her a few birthday wishes, and someone brought a cake, but for the most part she taught her classes and accepted her birthday wishes from her students. Normally Piper loved her job- she taught ninth and tenth grade English at a New York arts school- but today she didn't smile nearly as much, even when her favorite students gave her a birthday card. She left the second the bell rang, watching as the kids poured out the doors, smiling and laughing.

As Piper walked down the street back to her apartment, she couldn't help glancing at the soulmarks on the surrounding people. On one man's forearm, in huge loopy lettering, are the words _I didn't come dressed for this._ On one woman's wrist is simply _Hello._ Piper's own mark seemed to prickle on her collarbone as she walked down the street, and she pulled her scarf lower over it, so it couldn't be seen. Now, it felt like a forbidden part of her, like it was something that shouldn't be shown.

She clambered up the stairs dejectedly. It was only four in the afternoon- dinner was at eight- and the only thing she wanted to do was close herself off from the world, not have to think about anything for a couple of hours. Instead, she settled for wine and a bath, letting the water massage her exhausted body.

She let out a bitter laugh when she stepped out of the tub. Piper had seen soulmates fall together and she had also seen soulmates fall apart. Despite her cynicisms about soulmarks and love in general, there was some part of her that always thought, for all the messed up parts of her life, her soulmate would be one thing that ended up being okay in the end.

Obviously that wasn't going to happen, because he lived on the opposite side of the country and had a girlfriend. Piper dried herself off with a towel and slipped on some clothing. After a quick glance in the mirror, she nearly doubled over when she saw her red eyes and blotchy skin. Had she looked like this all day?

Her confusion grew to anger when her eyes traveled to the words on her collarbone. For a brief moment, she hated him. She hated his perfect handwriting and she hated California- she hated how perfect his name was. Jason Grace.

It wasn't until Piper listened to the hysterical sounds she was making that she started to try and calm herself down. She staggered to the kitchen, looking for the only thing that would give her some muddled brain sort of clarity- coffee. As she took a sip of the black brew, her mind cleared, though Piper knew she'd be up all night.

After a few more deep breaths, Piper grabbed her laptop and opened Facebook, immediately searching Jason Grace in the search bar. He was the third result to come up, and she clicked on his profile eagerly, looking to find as much as possible as she could about him.

The first thing she noticed was his profile picture. It was him and what Piper assumed was his girlfriend- a beautiful girl who looked Latina, with sweeping dark hair and flashing, jewel-like eyes. Piper couldn't help but make comparisons- she was taller, and prettier, and the pair looked so incredibly happy.

Piper learned that Jason had been educated at Berkeley, and lived in California for his entire life. He had been on a trip to Rome last year- with his girlfriend, Piper noted bitterly. Eventually, Piper decided she had stalked enough for one night, and shoved her laptop away from her and began to get ready for dinner.

She really was excited for tonight, and she didn't want to let some dumb soulmate take that away from her. Annabeth had gotten reservations for Piper's favorite place weeks in advance, and had made sure all of their friends were coming to dinner- Percy, Leo, Calypso, Piper's half sister Silena and her fiance Beckendorf, among others. Piper refused to let the night be a disaster because of her.

She put on the clothes she had picked out for tonight- a magenta lace romper with open toe black heels. Her makeup was light, as it usually was, with concealer, eyeliner, mascara, and a bright lipstick. Piper looked at herself in the mirror before she left, making sure she was pleased with her appearance before chanting the same thing over and over in her head: _Don't think about him._

She took a taxi instead of the subway to get to the restaurant, peering out the window at the glimmering lights. Though Piper had lived in New York for nearly three years, she had grown up in Los Angeles. Though LA was certainly a big city, New York had always enchanted her. It was the city she had always felt most at home in.

When she reached the restaurant, Piper, for the first time since that morning, felt good. What happened with Jason happened, and she reminded herself that she didn't need a soulmate. There were plenty of times soulmates decided that they didn't want to be together, or that they wanted to date other people. There were soulmates who never even wanted relationships. And all of those people had the chance to be happy. You didn't need a relationship to be happy.

That's what Piper said to herself as she walked in and saw her friends sitting at the table, smiling up at her. These were the people who would make her happy. They were right here.

She didn't need anyone else.

The dinner passed smoothly. Piper laughed a lot and joked around with Leo and Percy, got to catch up with Silena. The wedding was going to be in October, and Silena asked Piper to be her maid of honor, and Annabeth to be a bridesmaid. Piper smiled for the rest of dinner.

When it was at last time to part ways, Annabeth pulled Piper aside.

"Do you want to go hang out, together, for a little bit? Without anyone else."

Piper smiled widely at her friend. "I'd love to."

They promised Percy Annabeth would be back safely, and then the girls set off around the city, wandering wherever their feet took them. Eventually they made their way to the Empire State Building.

Annabeth glanced at Piper. "Let's do it. I never have."

"Let's do it," Piper agreed. "When I was eleven, my dad took me here for a weekend. This was the very first thing we did that night. He got us a private tour and everything."

"Sounds fun," Annabeth said as they stepped into the queue for tickets.

"It was. It was one of the last normal times we had together, before he was never home." Piper would've felt awkward saying that to any other person, but she had known Annabeth long enough to be sure she wouldn't make any judgment.

"Percy suggested coming here once. I think I just brushed it off as one of those dumb touristy things," Annabeth mused.

"Sometimes it's fun to be a tourist. Let's go to Times Square after this, and then tomorrow, we can hit up Ellis Island."

Annabeth laughed as they paid for their tickets, and stepped in the elevator to make their way to the top of the building. When they stepped out on the observation deck, Piper's breath caught in her throat. The lights glimmered in the darkness over the city, millions of people talking and eating and sleeping and working.

"Kind of makes you feel small, doesn't it?" Annabeth said softly.

"Yeah. It does," Piper replied after a minute. They looked at the view for a silent moment, then wandered around the deck for a little longer, smiling at the tourist couples and little kids. Annabeth went to the bathroom and Piper was left on the balcony, staring at the New York skyline. It was chilly in the romper, and she'd forgotten to bring a jacket.

"Piper?"

She nearly fell over at the sound of his voice coming from behind her, praying that it wasn't him. As she turned slowly, her fear was confirmed. "Hey Jason," she replied. He was standing a few feet away from her, looking perfect as ever with the city lights reflected on his flawless face.

"What are you doing here?" He asked. "I thought this was a touristy spot."

"Uh… it is. It's my birthday, so my friend and I," she glanced furiously around for Annabeth to come save her, "decided to come up here."

"Oh," he replied awkwardly. "Happy birthday."

"Thanks."

"What are you doing here, then?"

It was too dark to tell, but Piper bet that he blushed. "I don't know. My hotel room was boring, so I decided to come see the city a little more."

"At the number one annoying family hub."

"I guess you could say that," he rubbed his neck.

"God, you're such a tourist," she laughed. "Can't find your way around the subway, then you come to the Empire State building."

"Hey, you came here too!" he shot back, jokingly.

"I guess I did." Like that the moment is broken, and they stare at each other awkwardly for yet another second. His eyes lingered on her covered collarbone for a few seconds, like he was wishing to see the scrawl underneath.

Piper rubs her hands over her arms. Goddamnit, she thought to herself. Should've brought a jacket.

"Are you cold?" Jason says quickly.

"Oh, I'm fine," Piper lied through her teeth.

"You're lying. Let me give you my jacket," he pulls off a light blue fleece and hands it to her.

"No it's okay-"

"Piper," he says. "You look cold. I'm giving you my jacket, that's all. You can give it back when I see you next. I'm not taking no for an answer."

Eventually Piper just puts the fleece on. "I am not wearing this voluntarily," she grumbles jokingly.

"It's alright, you're still wearing it."

They fall back into the silence again.

"I was going to text you," Jason said, "I forgot."

"No, it's okay," she replied quickly. "I wouldn't have replied anyway, I was at dinner with my friends."

"Piper? Who's this?" Piper's eyes turn to Annabeth, coming up next to Jason with a confused look on her face.

"Annabeth!" Piper said in relief. "This is Jason. I met him on the subway this morning. Jason, this is Annabeth, my friend. She lives here too."

Annabeth shakes Jason's hand. "Nice to meet you. What are you doing on the Empire State Building?"

"I'm visiting from San Francisco for a business meeting and I thought I'd come check it out," he replied.

"Oh, San Francisco. I grew up there."

"Me too. Where?"

Annabeth lists where, and they make awkward small talk for a minute before Jason decides it's time to leave. "Piper, I'll text you later okay? Tomorrow, breakfast."

"Sounds good," she called. "Have a nice night."

"You too."

The second Jason left, Annabeth spun towards her friend. "So, would that happen to be Jason's jacket you're wearing, Miss McLean?"

Piper groaned. "He wouldn't take no for an answer."

"Why didn't you tell me about him earlier?"

"Annabeth, we met this morning."

"That's not the point. You could've mentioned him at dinner!"

"Silena would've freaked out."

"So what? Why didn't you mention him?"

Piper took a deep breath. "Annabeth, he's my soulmate."

Annabeth's eyes widen. "He's your soulmate? Then why aren't you two making out and moving in together or something?"

Piper groaned. "It's not that simple. First of all, he lives in California. And he has a girlfriend."

Annabeth's eyes looked like they were going to pop out of her head. "Tell me everything."

And Piper did. She recounted the story from the subway this morning, to the whole day, ending with the conversation they just had. Annabeth was a good listener- she kept quiet and stared out at the sparkling lights of the city, not speaking until after the story was over.

"I keep telling myself that I don't need a soulmate- there are so many stories of people not needing them, or just falling apart. That's what I was thinking all throughout dinner. But then I see him again- oh God, I've only known him for less than a day. I see him again and he's so damn funny and easy to talk to, and perfect. And it makes me so mad because I feel like the only thing that pulls us together is this stupid soulmark. There's nothing else," Piper took a deep breath. "Sorry for ranting to you about my thoughts, Beth."

Annabeth was quiet for another moment. "No, it's okay. I've never gone through what you are right now, so I'm not going to try to say anything that might be wrong. But I guess I would meet up with him while he's still here, and figure out what you both want for your lives, and for each other. Maybe it works out, and maybe it doesn't. And either option is okay."

"Sometimes I feel like we got cheated. Because of soulmarks."

"Why?"

"We don't get to choose what we want with our lives. We grow up expecting to be with this one person. We never get another option because it's already pre-planned for us."

"But good can come from soulmarks too. I probably wouldn't be with Percy."

"I guess."

Sounds exploded from the city, but for a moment, the silence encapsulated them.

Annabeth began to talk again. "You don't necessarily need to end up with your soulmate, Piper, but they're your soulmate because they're the best possible match there is for you. Out of anyone. Don't look at it so cynically all the time."

"I know."

"Let's get going, okay? Let's go find a twenty four hour diner. I'm hungry."

"Okay."

They decided to meet up at a small restaurant Piper knew in Hell's Kitchen, at ten that morning. Piper had gotten back to her apartment at one AM from hanging out with Annabeth, and didn't get to sleep until later, so the bags under her eyes were stark when she woke up, an hour before she had to see Jason. Piper cursed her inability to move in the morning and hopped in the shower, hoping the water would wake her up. It was only after she hopped on the subway to get to breakfast she realized she forgot Jason's jacket from last night.

She walked into the restaurant five minutes late, only to see Jason already sitting at a table for two by the window. He was wearing a blue button down with the sleeves rolled up to his forearms, and Piper couldn't deny that her eyes lingered for a moment on his uncovered arms. He was reading the _New York Times_ and sipping a coffee, and he hadn't noticed her yet.

When she pulled herself out of her reverie, Piper made her way over to the table and sat down across from Jason. "Morning," she gave him a quick awkward smile.

"Morning. How was the rest of your night?"

"It was fine. We wandered around for a little bit. You?"

"Yeah, I just saw more of the city. It's beautiful."

"It is. What's it like compared to San Francisco?"

Jason's eyes lit up at the mention of his home city, and he immediately began talking for a little bit about California. Piper listened, but mostly she was focused on how he looked- it was clear he loved San Francisco, she noticed with a sinking feeling. "I forgot your jacket, by the way. I'm sorry."

He waved it off. "It's not a big deal."

Piper nodded. She could tell that both of them were dancing around the issue at hand, and neither wanted to be the one to start the conversation. "How'd you like the Empire State building?"

"It was beautiful. It's so different from where I'm from."

"Good different or bad different?"

"Neither, really. There are some things that I really love about New York- I have a sister here, and you don't have anything quite like it in the West. But California is where I grew up. I know it like the back of my hand."

"Where does your sister live?"

"Brooklyn. She runs a non profit organization to benefit young girls in low income areas."

"That's amazing."

"Yeah, she's pretty cool. Have you lived here your whole life?"

"No…" Piper shifted uncomfortably. They were getting into a dangerous area here, inching towards her father. "I was raised in Los Angeles, but I went to Berkeley for college, actually. Then I moved here with my friend Annabeth and her soulmate Percy. You met her last night."

"Oh yeah, the intimidating blonde. And what year did you graduate Berkeley? I went to Stanford."

The conversation continued easily. It turned out they had graduated in the same year, and they talked about college for a moment until the topic had run dry, and they were left back again with the elephant in the room. Piper had always considered herself to be straightforward- she went out and said it.

"What are we going to do?"

Jason didn't reply for a moment, instead choosing to stare out the window. "I don't know."

"That's not good enough," Piper said softly. "We need to know."

Jason sighed, looking at her once again. Piper couldn't help but look at his eyes intently, the bright, electric blue. She wanted to take a picture and carry it around with her, never let them go.

"I'm twenty five," he started talking. "It's not too late to meet your soulmate, but for some reason I never thought I would. It was something that happened to other people. So I met my girlfriend, Reyna, and it felt like I was breaking free of something. I was choosing my own path."

"I get that."

"But then I came here and I met you." Jason looked at her carefully, like he was picking his next words and making sure they didn't hurt. "And I'm torn- not just between two people, but two places. Two lives. I have to make sure- I want to make sure that I make the right decision."

"No, I understand," Piper prayed her voice didn't break.

"I could completely pick up my life and stay here with you- an unfamiliar city, someone I've just met. Or I can go home- to a place I know. To someone I've been with for a while." Piper noted he didn't say Reyna, or even girlfriend.

"It's okay. We don't know if it would work out or not. It's not something to feel bad over."

"I still feel bad, though. I do owe something to Reyna."

"Does she know?"

"No. Not yet. I was going to tell her when I got back."

"You should tell her as soon as possible. Like you said to me- you should go in open."

Piper said quietly. She scolded herself for feeling envy, sadness- whatever it was over Jason. They'd only met a day before.

"But what do you think?" Jason asked. "I'd like to hear."

Piper paused before giving her answer. "You've built a life on the flip side of the country, with people you care about. So have I. And whether or not I fit into that life or you fit into mine- that's okay." Piper finished carefully, though there were words aching to jump out of her lips, so many things she wanted to say.

Jason studied her intently. "Thanks, Piper."

She nodded in response, looking out the window, at the table, anywhere but Jason.

"The thing is, I don't want to toss this out the window," he said quietly. "I don't want to give this up."

"That's unfair. To me and to her."

"I know," he said softly, looking at her intently.

Piper knew what she wanted to say- she didn't want to give this up either, but more than anything, she can't stop thinking about both the hundreds of miles and the girl separating them. "Jason, are you happy with her?"

"I don't know."

"I'm not a homewrecker," she replied. "I don't want to be a deciding factor in your relationship, Jason. Maybe we met at the wrong time. You have my number, contact me if you'd like, but it can't happen now. Not right now."

"Do you want something to happen, though?"

His question takes her aback, and Piper paused. "I don't know." She was lying.

He just looks at her, and Piper tried to search for any sort of emotion in his eyes, but the only thing she sees is blank and unfeeling. "I'm sorry."

"It's not your fault. According to the universe, we're supposed to be together."

"My entire life, I've always had everything planned out for me. I've always known what I was going to do. Just this once," he said slowly, "I'd like to make my own decision."

"Don't say stuff like that."

"Just think about it, alright? I'm going to. I don't know what's going to happen, but I'll take some time and try and figure it out. You have my number, contact me when you know what you want to do."

"Okay," Piper said, because it's the only thing she could say.

After refusing to let her pay for the check, Jason insisted on riding the subway back to her apartment, though it was broad daylight. Piper felt like a teenager again, dancing the dangerous line between _loves me, loves me not._ Once again, she forgot to give him his jacket as he said goodbye.

Thanks for reading, I hope that you enjoyed the story! It's not complete yet, but I'm hoping for it to be around 10-20K words, this is just the first part. This is my first upload to , but I have several WIP that I hope to upload in the future.

-Emily


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